Issuing parking tickets may violate federal law

In Senne v. Village of Palatine, Illinois, No. 10-3243 (7th Cir. Aug. 6, 2012) the federal Seventh Circuit Court held that the Village potentially violated the federal Driver’s Privacy Protection Act (18 U.S.C. §2721 et seq.) when Village police left on a vehicle a parking ticket in plain view containing personal information such as gender, weight, and address. Local officials should carefully scrutinize what information is contained on tickets left in plain view.